Potential Contribution of Green Rooftops to Rainwater Management in Urban Areas in São Miguel Island, Azores

Abstract

The Azores archipelago is located in the North Atlantic Ocean, including nine volcanic islands. The Azores climate, temperate oceanic, is influenced by the Azores anticyclone, being characterized by high air humidity indices, low thermal amplitude, abundant precipitation and persistent wind. Like other urban areas, Ponta Delgada, in S. Miguel Island, suffers from high impermeabilization with all the negative environmental consequences that arise. As such, the present chapter intends to discuss the opportunity of greening rooftops in urban areas in S. Miguel Island (performing a survey of the roofs and the corresponding area that could be used) showing the advantages that could arise, regarding the environmental performance improvement (e.g., building water storage and heat balance) and their role in the minimization of extreme weather events effects (e.g., urban wastewater infrastructure). As a first step toward evaluating the contribution of these infrastructures in the urban areas of the Azores, a green rooftop pilot study using plants and local substrates has been designed, to be built in the near future.